JOHN  HENRY  NASH 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/desideriuserasmuOOolnerich 


Besitimusi  Crasmus 

Paper  read  before  the  Berkeley  Club,  March  18, 1920. 

The  quotations  from  the  writings  of  Erasmus  are  translations 

by  Hallam,  Froude,  Allen,  Emerton, 

Hazlitt  and  others. 

BY 

WARREN  OLNEY 


SAN  FRANCISCO: 

PRINTED  FOR  PRIVATE  CIRCULATION  BY 

JOHN  HENRY  NASH 

1920 


Besiberius  Erasmus 

aNDOUBTEDLY  Erasmus  was  the  greatest 
scholar,  writer,  wit  and  philosopher  of  his  age. 
If  we  consider  the  state  of  civilization  of  his 
time,  the  small  amoimt  of  actual  knowledge 
then  possessed  by  mankind  and  the  limitations 
of  his  environment,  it  will  be  hard  to  point  out  a  man  in 
history  who  was  his  equal  in  clearness  of  vision,  literary 
excellence  and  learning.  The  combination  of  these  quali- 
ties in  one  man  will  always  make  Erasmus  a  notable  figure 
in  the  development  of  our  race. 

He  was  bom  out  of  wedlock  in  Rotterdam,  Holland,  in 
1466  or  1467,  probably  in  the  former  year.  His  father  was 
a  priest.  Of  his  mother  almost  nothing  is  known.  In  that 
age  the  birth  of  children  to  a  priest,  notwithstanding  his 
vows  of  celibacy,  was  so  common  an  occurrence  as  to  oc- 
casion little  or  no  scandal.  The  father  of  the  famous  scholar 
Agricola  was  a  priest  and  boasted  of  two  pieces  of  good 
fortime  that  came  to  him  the  same  day,  the  birth  of  his 
son  and  a  clerical  promotion.  The  father  of  Erasmus  seems 
to  have  been  a  man  of  some  private  fortune,  for  on  his 
death,  when  Erasmus  was  thirteen,  he  left  an  estate  that 
his  son  always  claimed  was  amply  sufficient  to  meet  the 
expenses  of  the  education  of  himself  and  an  older  brother, 
but  was  wasted  by  guardians.  Of  the  older  brother  we 
know  nothing  except  that  in  a  letter  Erasmus  speaks 
rather  contemptuously  of  him  as  caring  nothing  for  learn- 
ing, and  loving  bodily  ease  and  comfort. 


V^t^itittiui  At  the  age  of  nine,  Erasmus  was  placed  with  his  brother 
(ttK&XtlUSi  ^^  ^^^  Deventer  School,  of  which  Agricola  was  master, 
the  most  famous  school  of  the  age.  His  mother  seems  to 
have  accompanied  her  sons  to  care  for  them.  This  and 
the  notice  of  her  death  are  the  only  references  to  her 
that  I  find,  except  the  story  told  by  Jortin  in  his  life  of 
Erasmus,  upon  which  Charles  Reade  based  his  romance 
of  The  Cloister  and  Hearth.  There  seems  to  be  no  au- 
thority for  Jortin's  story,  and  it  is  inconsistent  with  the 
fact  that  she  had  two  sons  and  Erasmus  was  the  younger. 
He  remained  in  this  famous  school  for  four  years,  catch- 
ing up  with  the  older  scholars.  In  after  years  his  expres- 
sions of  dissatisfaction  with  his  school  days  was  very 
likely  his  dissatisfaction  with  his  teachers.  It  is  certain 
that  through  all  his  later  student  days  his  mind  was  so 
quick  and  active  that  he  outran  his  teachers.  And  when 
he  tried  to  be  a  teacher  himself,  he  was  so  bored  by  the 
dullness  of  his  pupils  that  nothing  short  of  absolute  ne- 
cessity could  keep  him  at  his  task. 

His  father  and  mother  both  died  of  the  plague  when  he 
was  thirteen.  The  next  three  years,  or  until  he  was  six- 
teen, were  spent  in  a  school  which  I  take  to  have  been 
much  like  the  schools  of  the  Christian  Brothers  of  the 
present.  His  studies  were  then  interrupted  by  long  sick- 
ness. On  recovering  he  was  then,  as  he  always  afterwards 
claimed,  forced  into  a  monastery  by  his  guardians,  who 
had  wasted  his  estate.  He  declares  that  he  strongly  ob- 
jected, that  his  desire  was  to  devote  himself  to  the  new 
learning  then  making  such  a  stir  in  Europe,  and  a  mon- 
astery was  no  place  for  him  to  pursue  his  studies.  He 
wanted  to  go  to  a  university. 

It  was  the  same  spirit  that  has  over  and  over  again  been 
exhibited  by  the  bright  boy  against  dull  parents.  "He 
wants  to  go  to  college."  Erasmus  at  sixteen  cared  for 
nothing  apparently  except  learning.  The  amusements  of 
boys  of  his  age  did  not  interest  him.  He  was  delicate 
physically.  The  Renaissance  was  spreading  from  Italy  to 


all  Europe.  Printing  had  come  into  vogue  and  numerous  SDeSiiDettttSf 
editions  of  the  Latin  classics  were  being  issued.  Notwith-  (I|;tafl;mUfii 
standing  the  clerical  objections  to  the  study  of  Greek, 
eager  minds,  hungry  for  knowledge,  were  groping  through 
the  mysteries  of  an  unknown  language  with  a  vision  be- 
fore them  of  a  new  world  of  literature.  It  is  evident  that 
this  boy  of  sixteen  was  already  in  sympathy  with  the  zeal, 
the  thirst  for  knowledge  that  made  this  age  the  most  re- 
markable in  human  history,  excepting  always  our  own. 

Without  the  means  of  subsistence  at  a  university,  with 
guardians  insisting  on  a  monastery,  an  older  friend  to 
whom  he  was  much  attached  picturing  to  him  the  oppor- 
tunities he  would  have  for  study  in  a  monastery,  the  re- 
sult could  be  foreseen.  He  took  the  preliminary  vows  of  a 
monk,  assumed  the  monastic  dress  and— hated  monas- 
teries and  monks  ever  after. 

He  spent  four  years  in  the  monastery,  and  though  in 
after  life  he  denounced  monks  and  their  ways  of  life  with 
great  power  and  bitterness,  yet  he  certainly  did  pursue 
his  studies  there,  for  at  twenty  he  had  acquired  a  reputa- 
tion for  learning,  ready  wit  and  literary  ability.  There  are 
some  minds  so  richly  endowed  and  so  imbued  with  a  love 
of  learning  that  a  university  course  is  merely  an  aid,  not  a 
necessity.  When  about  twenty,  the  Bishop  of  Cambrai,  con- 
templating a  visit  to  Rome,  wanted  a  Latin  secretary.  The 
Bishop  either  knew  him  or  had  heard  of  him,  and  procured 
for  him  a  dispensation  permitting  him  to  leave  the  mon- 
astery to  accompany  him  on  the  proposed  j  oumey  to  Rome. 
The  dispensation,  however,  did  not  permit  him  to  leave  off 
all  the  monastic  dress.  This  badge  of  monkdom  was  so 
hateful  to  him  that  after  he  became  famous  he  procured, 
by  direct  appeal  to  the  Pope,  an  additional  dispensation 
allowing  him  to  discard  the  last  vestige  of  monkish  dress. 

At  twenty  he  left  the  monastery,  never  to  return,  and 
entered  the  service  of  the  Bishop  of  Cambrai.  For  some 
unknown  reason  the  journey  of  the  Bishop  to  Rome  did 
not  take  place,  but  Erasmus  spent  about  five  years  in  his 


SI>r0tDe^m0  household,  where  he  pursued  his  studies  with  unabated 
d^aSittlUfi?  ^^^^-  ^^  made  visits,  but  for  how  much  time  is  unknown, 
to  the  then  and  still  celebrated  University  of  Lou  vain, 
probably  for  the  purpose  of  study  in  that  library,  de- 
stroyed by  the  Germans  in  1914.  It  is  reasonably  certain 
that  he  already  knew  as  much  as  the  professors,  and,  as 
later  when  prosecuting  his  studies  in  Greek,  was  dissatis- 
fied with  the  best  instructors  because  they  could  teach 
him  little. 

In  1492,  the  year  of  America's  discovery,  he  took  some 
additional  vows  as  a  priest  at  Utrecht.  He  was  now  twenty- 
five,  with  much  local  reputation  as  a  scholar,  wit  and 
poet.  Little  of  his  verse  has  come  down  to  us,  for  at  an 
early  age  he  gave  up  versifying.  Shortly  before  all  Europe 
was  reading  his  prose,  he  made  a  visit  with  Sir  Thomas 
More  to  the  children  of  Henry  VII,  where  he  was  intro- 
duced to  the  young  Prince  Henry,  afterwards  Henry  VIII. 
Erasmus  says  that  the  prince  asked  him  for  a  poem,  and 
that  on  returning  to  his  lodgings  he  composed  some  verse 
in  honor  of  the  prince  with  much  difficulty,  because  he 
had  given  up  that  branch  of  literature. 

Returning  to  his  twenty-fifth  year,  we  see  a  young  man 
with  much  local  reputation  for  wit  and  learning,  but  hun- 
gering for  more  knowledge  and  a  sight  of  the  great  world. 
The  worthy  Bishop  consented  to  his  going  to  Paris  to 
study  at  the  University  there,  and  promised  him  an  allow- 
ance sufficient,  as  the  Bishop  thought,  for  his  necessary 
expenses.  Here,  with  a  few  sentences,  I  shall  dismiss  the 
unpleasant  story  of  his  pecuniary  troubles  that  lasted 
until  fame  came  to  him.  Much  criticism  has  been  expressed 
of  Erasmus'  efforts  to  secure  support  from  wealthy 
friends.  He  did,  when  a  student,  solicit  funds  from 
wealthy  friends,  and  in  mature  life  accepted  gifts  from 
those  who  were  in  sympathy  with  him.  This  is  the  charge. 
But  the  man,  and  the  times  in  which  he  lived,  must  be 
considered. 

As  to  the  man:  He  had  little  thrift  or  ideas  of  economy. 


He  felt  strongly  that  he  was  entitled  to  a  comfortable  2D00tD(tiU£( 
support,  and  his  delicate  and  infirm  body  required  it.  He  (|];i:aflfttlU0 
maintained  that  he  must  have  enough  income  to  pursue 
his  studies  in  reasonable  comfort  and  felt  that  his  great 
and  wealthy  friends  (he  had  plenty  of  them)  ought  to 
furnish  that  income.  It  should  be  observed  that  it  was 
only  from  those  whom  he  supposed  were  in  sympathy 
with  him  that  he  would  accept  gifts. 

Repeatedly  he  turned  down  the  most  seductive  offers 
from  popes  and  kings  rather  than  surrender  his  freedom. 
He  felt  and  said,  all  through  his  career,  that  he  must  be 
free  from  obligation  to  the  great  that  would  come  from 
accepting  the  honors  or  emoluments  of  office.  His  freedom, 
he  said,  was  dearer  to  him  than  honors  or  gold.  After  his 
reputation  was  established  his  friends  and  admirers  gave 
him  enough  for  his  comfortable  support.  His  English 
friends  were  specially  generous  to  him. 

As  to  the  times:  In  those  days  the  scholar  and  writer 
were  dependent  on  patrons  for  support,  and  it  was  not 
considered  disgraceful  for  the  poor  scholar  or  poet  to  have 
friends  solicit  for  him,  or  for  himself  to  solicit,  gifts  of 
money  from  the  wealthy.  There  was  no  copyright  in  those 
days.  No  author,  ancient  or  modem,  had  such  a  contem- 
porary constituency  as  Erasmus.  No  other  author's  pub- 
lications ever  had  so  many  readers  in  his  own  lifetime.  In 
that  respect  he  is  in  a  class  by  himself.  If  there  had  been 
a  copyright  law,  such  as  we  now  have,  it  would  have  made 
him  a  millionaire. 

With  promise  of  an  allowance  from  the  Bishop,  he  went 
to  Paris,  professedly  to  attend  the  University.  In  fact, 
the  University  had  nothing  to  teach  him  and  he  spent 
little  time  within  its  walls.  His  reputation  for  wit  and 
learning  had  preceded  him,  and  he  was  heartily  welcomed 
by  the  writers  and  scholars  of  the  great  city.  There  are 
indications  that  his  life  in  Paris  was  a  gay  one,  but  whether 
it  was  or  not,  there  is  no  doubt  he  did  not  change  his 
habits  of  study.  All  the  Latin  classics  were  now  at  his 


Wtaitittim  fingers'  end.  The  clergy  opposed  the  study  of  Greek,  but 
(I^ta£iUtU0  ^^  spite  of  opposition,  and  without  grammars  or  diction- 
aries, the  language  was  being  mastered  by  a  few.  Erasmus 
took  up  the  new  study  with  his  customary  zeal  and  in- 
dustry. In  one  of  his  letters  he  says:  "I  have  given  up  my 
whole  soul  to  Greek,  and  as  soon  as  I  get  some  money  I 
shall  buy  Greek  books  and  then  some  clothes."  He  spent 
six  years  in  Paris,  with  visits  more  or  less  prolonged  to 
his  native  land.  The  allowance  made  by  the  Bishop  was 
not  sufficient  and  he  eked  out  his  income  by  taking  pupils. 
Though  he  hated  teaching,  he  became  much  attached  to 
some  of  his  pupils  and  they  to  him.  One  of  his  Paris  pupils 
was  William  Blount,  the  heir  of  Lord  Montjoy,  an  Eng- 
lish nobleman.  Between  teacher  and  pupil  an  attachment 
arose  that  lasted  their  joint  lives.  In  1498  Montjoy  per- 
suaded Erasmus  to  visit  England  with  him.  There,  in  the 
language  of  today,  Erasmus  had  the  time  of  his  life.  He 
was  thirty-one,  in  the  full  vigor  of  young  manhood,  with 
a  reputation  much  increased  by  his  six  years  in  Paris. 
The  fact  that  he  was  the  guest  of  a  young  and  popular 
nobleman  naturally  attracted  attention.  Immediately  he 
was  welcomed  by  as  great  a  galaxy  of  ability  and  virtue 
as  England  ever  possessed.  Warham  was  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  and  thereafter  as  long  as  he  lived  was  the 
friend  and  patron  of  Erasmus.  Thomas  More  then  was 
only  eighteen,  but  already  recognized  as  a  coming  light  of 
the  world.  As  long  as  he  lived  he  was  Erasmus'  most  inti- 
mate friend.  It  is  said  that  at  a  Lord  Mayor's  dinner,  Eras- 
mus and  More,  without  previous  introduction  and  not 
knowing  each  other,  were  seated  near  each  other.  They 
got  to  talking  and  then  to  arguing  some  proposition  that 
one  of  them  advanced.  The  discussion  becoming  quite 
warm,  Erasmus  said:  ''You  can  be  nobody  but  More," 
to  which  More  replied,  "You  are  Erasmus  or  the  devil."* 

*This  well-known  story  is  thought  they  say,  More  was  too  young  at  the 
by  the  biographers  of  both  More  and  time  of  their  first  meeting.  But  though 
Erasmus  to  be  apocryphal,   because.        More  was  very  young  at  the  time  of 


But  at  this  particular  period  the  man  who  evidently  WtiHiHttiUfi 
most  impressed  Erasmus  was  Colet.  Of  him,  suffice  it  to  (I];i:a0ntU0 
say  that  with  great  talents  and  learning  he  tried  to  live  as 
Christ  would  have  him  live.  Christ  was  his  lodestar.  And 
now  we  see  the  gay,  young,  learned  Erasmus,  already 
thoroughly  disgusted  with  the  superstitions  of  the  church 
of  his  time,  and  turning  his  thoughts  to  the  eariy  church 
of  the  apostles  and  its  founder,  finding  in  his  friend  a 
shining  light  illuminating  his  mind.  He  says  he  spent  much 
time  with  Colet  and  their  talk  was  all  of  Christ  and  how 
to  live  like  him.  Colet  did  live  like  him.  Erasmus  not  al- 
ways. He  had  too  much  temper,  and  was  too  easily  peeved 
by  criticism  to  be  as  neariy  a  perfect  man  as  his  friend. 
But,  for  the  balance  of  his  life,  Christ  was  ever  in  his  mind. 
Here  with  Colet  probably  came  the  inspiration  that  moved 
him  to  his  great  work  of  the  translation  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. Here  it  may  be  well  to  enlarge  a  little  on  what  must 
seem  strange  to  one  imacquainted  with  the  history  of  this 
time,  viz:  the  ability  of  Erasmus  to  converse  so  easily 
with  his  English  friends.  At  that  time  Latin  was  the  uni- 
versal, all-prevailing  language  of  the  intelligent  portion  of 
Christendom.  Educated  men  wrote  in  Latin,  conversed  in 
Latin,  thought  in  Latin.  There  is  no  evidence  that  Eras- 
mus, bom  in  Holland,  but  living  all  his  mature  life  in  / 
England,  France,  Germany  and  Italy,  knew  any  modem 
language  save  his  vernacular.  Likewise  there  is  no  evidence 
that  he  suffered  any  inconvenience  in  his  numerous  jour- 
neys from  not  knowing  the  language  of  the  different  coun- 

Erasmus'  first  visit  to  England,  he  al-  Colet  had  said  of  him,  "There  is  but 
ready  had  a  reputation  surpassing  that  one  wit  in  England  and  that  is  young 
of  any  youth  of  whom  I  have  read.  His  Thomas  More."  At  twenty-four,  as 
father  took  him  away  from  Oxford  member  of  the  House  of  Commons,  he 
about  the  time  of  Erasmus'  first  visit  led  Parliament  in  the  resistance  to  a 
and  set  him  to  studying  law.  He  was  tyrant  king's  demand  for  money, 
already  the  author  of  English  and  Therefore  the  reason  given  by  the  bio- 
Latin  poems  of  sufficient  merit  to  have  graphers  for  not  believing  this  story  is 
come  down  to  us,  and  is  supposed  to  not  sovmd.  If  such  a  story  is  older  than 
have  already  written  the  first  history  Erasmus  and  More,  which  is  not  im- 
composed  in  the  English  language,  his  probable,  that  would  not  be  disproof 
life  of  Edward  V  and  Richard  III.  At  that  these  two  men  reenacted  the  story 
twenty  his  public  lectures  in  London  when  they  first  met. 
were     attracting     general     attention. 


J5D(S>tDertU0  tries  through  which  he  traveled.  Frequently  he  complained 
a^tWHttlU^  of  the  badness  of  the  inns.  The  description  of  a  German 
inn  in  Reade's  Cloister  and  Hearth  is  taken  from  one  of 
his  letters.  It  seems  therefore  that  the  statement  that  even 
inn-keepers  knew  enough  Latin  to  meet  the  requirements 
of  guests  is  probably  true. 

On  this,  his  first  visit  to  England,  Erasmus  seems  to 
have  spent  most  of  his  time  at  Oxford,  where  he  pursued 
his  Greek  studies  with  Grocyn,  a  notable  man  of  his  time, 
and  especially  devoted  to  Greek.  Colet  tried  to  get  Eras- 
mus to  settle  at  Oxford  as  a  professor  and  join  him  in  ex- 
pounding the  doctrines  of  Christianity  in  the  light  of 
reason  and  common  sense.  Just  why  this  offer  was  de- 
clined is  not  certainly  known.  It  is  evident  that  as  early 
as  this  time  he  was  possessed  with  the  idea  of  a  mission  to 
clear  away  the  absurdities  of  the  theologians  and  of  the 
dogmas  of  the  church,  and  bring  forward  the  simple  truths 
enunciated  by  Christ  and  the  first  apostles.  As  yet  I  have 
not  found  that  he  at  any  time  maintained  any  conception 
of  God  other  than  that  of  fatherhood,  but  I  do  find  that 
continually,  through  his  whole  life,  in  season  and  out  of 
season,  he  held  up  Christ  as  the  exemplar  of  all  goodness 
and  virtue.  It  seems  probable  that  he  had  doubts  of  im- 
mortality, for  in  writing  about  More  he  expresses  much 
pleasure  that  More  was  fully  satisfied  with  the  evidence 
in  favor  of  immortality,  as  much  as  to  say  that  he  wished 
he  himself  were  entirely  satisfied  with  the  evidence.  But 
however  that  may  be,  this  is  certain,  that  his  two  main 
objects  were,  first,  to  increase  the  knowledge  of  men,  and 
second,  to  persuade  men  to  imitate  Christ  in  their  lives. 
His  idea  was  that  if  men  live  properly  in  this  world,  the 
rest  will  take  care  of  itself. 

But  returning  to  his  refusal  of  a  professorship  at  Oxford, 
Emerton  thinks  that  it  was  because  he  could  not  and 
would  not  put  his  neck  in  a  yoke.  I  am  inclined  to  think 
that  was  not  all  of  the  reasons,  that  he  had  larger  plans  in 
view  and  feared  he  might  have  to  teach  too  much,  a  busi- 

8 


ness  that  he  detested.  At  any  rate,  he  did  decline,  and  SDe^tDettUSr 
thereby,  Emerton  says,  Oxford  lost  a  professor,  but  the  d^aflfttltttf 
world  gained  a  man. 

After  about  two  years  spent  in  England,  he  returned  to 
France  and  published  his  first  book,  Adagia.  This  book 
is  a  collection  of  sayings  or  adages  of  great  men,  proverbs, 
epigrams,  anecdotes,  with  his  remarks  or  notes  upon  them. 
It  was  these  notes  that  gave  life  and  interest  to  the  col- 
lection. Here  he  first  plies  the  whip  on  the  backs  of  the 
clergy  of  his  time.  Here,  too,  he  first  assails  the  political 
evils  of  his  time  and  upbraids  kings  for  their  follies  and 
crimes.  Here  is  a  sentence:  "Let  any  one  turn  over  the 
pages  of  ancient  or  modem  history— scarcely  in  several 
generations  will  you  find  one  or  two  princes  whose  folly 
has  not  inflicted  the  greatest  misery  on  mankind.'*  Again 
he  says,  "Do  we  not  see  that  noble  cities  are  erected  by  the 
people:  that  they  are  destroyed  by  princes?  That  the  com- 
munity grows  rich  by  the  industry  of  its  citizens— is  plun- 
dered by  the  rapacity  of  its  princes?  That  good  laws  are 
enacted  by  popular  magistrates— are  violated  by  these 
princes?  That  the  people  love  peace:  that  princes  excite 
war?"  Here  is  one  more  quotation:  "Towns  are  burned, 
lands  are  wasted,  temples  are  plundered,  innocent  citizens 
are  slaughtered,  while  the  prince  is  playing  at  dice  or  danc- 
ing, or  amusing  himself  with  puppets,  or  hunting  or 
drinking." 

The  author's  reputation  throughout  all  Europe  was  made 
at  once.  The  book  had  a  prodigious  sale.  No  less  than 
sixty-two  editions  were  issued  in  the  author's  lifetime. 

The  clergy  of  loose  lives  howled  with  rage.  The  better 
class  were  delighted.  For  instance:  Archbishop  Warham, 
his  English  friend,  was  so  pleased  that  he  carried  the  book 
wherever  he  went  and  was  enthusiastic  in  its  praise.  He 
sent  Erasmus  money,  offered  him  a  benefice  if  he  would 
return  to  England.  Erasmus  declined  to  return.  He  now 
had  the  ear  of  Europe  and  probably  was  already  at  work 
on  his  translation  of  the  New  Testament. 


2D0fl>iD0tiufif  His  next  publication  was  the  Euchiridion  or  Christian 
CBta^ttttt^  Soldier's  Manual.  This  little  treatise,  like  his  Adagia, 
had  an  immense  circulation  all  over  Europe.  It  is  horta- 
tory in  character,  and  is  a  F)Owerful  appeal  to  live  a  good 
life,  to  follow  Christ.  In  the  modem  phrase,  and  in  a  good 
sense,  it  has  * 'punch."  But  though  received  by  the  public 
with  immense  applause,  yet  afterwards  it  was  claimed 
that  it  contained  the  seeds  of  the  terrible  rebellion  against 
the  Church  that  soon  followed.  This  was  because  the  little 
book  emphasized  right  living  as  the  way  of  salvation.  One 
of  the  charges  made  against  him  was  that  he  had  denied 
the  existence  of  a  real  hell.  He  replied  that  he  had  not 
denied  it— that  he  merely  declared  the  existence  of  hell 
was  more  cleariy  taught  in  theology  than  in  the  Scriptures. 
In  a  preface  to  later  editions,  speaking  of  those  who 
claimed  to  be  pastors  and  doctors  of  theology,  he  says : 
"They  could  never  have  enough  of  discussing  in  what 
words  they  ought  to  speak  of  Christ,  as  if  they  were  deal- 
ing with  some  horrid  demon,  who  would  bring  destruction 
upon  them  if  they  failed  to  invoke  him  in  proper  terms, 
instead  of  a  most  gentle  Savior,  who  asks  nothing  of  us 
but  a  pure  and  upright  life."  You  have  here  the  creed  of 
Erasmus:  "A  most  gentle  Savior,  who  asks  nothing  from 
us  but  a  pure  and  upright  life."  Keeping  this  in  mind,  it 
is  not  hard  to  understand  why  Erasmus  could  not  endure 
the  creeds  of  Luther  or  Calvin  and  refused  to  give  those 
creeds  his  support. 

He  now  again  visited  England,  spending  a  large  part  of 
his  time  with  Sir  Thomas  More.  Then  we  find  him  in 
Italy,  where  he  spent  a  few  years,  and  obtained  his  Doc- 
tor's Degree  from  the  University  of  Turin.  At  Bologna  he 
saw  the  warrior  Pope  Julius  II  make  his  triumphant  entry 
into  the  conquered  city,  with  all  the  splendor  that  accom- 
panied a  successful  Roman  warrior's  triumph.  In  Rome 
he  was  cordially  received  by  the  magnates  of  the  Church 
and  became  personally  acquainted  with  Cardinal  Medici, 
afterwards  Pope  Leo  X. 

10 


He  then  returned  to  England,  and  in  1509  published  a  2r>e0idmu0 
little  book  that  caused  the  world  of  his  time  to  grin  and  (j^x^^xtiUfSi 
then  to  think,  the  Praise  oi  Folly.  The  title  was  Moria, 
the  Greek  word  for  folly,  and  a  pun  on  the  name  of  Thomas 
More,  who  had  inspired  its  publication.  It  was  issued  in 
1509,  eight  years  before  Luther  began  his  contest  with  the 
Church.  Whether  or  not  Luther  was  influenced  by  its 
sarcasm  on  indulgencies  and  his  excoriation  of  the  popes 
and  the  clergy,  I  cannot  say,  for  I  have  found  no  state- 
ment on  the  subject,  but  it  is  not  probable  that  Luther 
was  unacquainted  with  what  all  Europe  was  talking  about. 
It  is  reasonably  certain  that  Luther  had  a  general  ac- 
quaintance with  the  books  put  out  by  Erasmus.* 

There  is  an  ethical  quality  running  all  through  Eras- 
mus' writings,  and  his  Praise  of  Folly,  though  jesting 
with  the  faults  and  weaknesses  of  mankind,  contained  a 
moral  obvious  to  thinking  men.  The  book  purports  to  be 
an  oration  by  Folly,  a  female,  the  offspring  of  Wealth  and 
Youth.  Decked  out  in  the  garb  of  the  professional  fool  of 
that  age,  with  cap,  bells,  etc.,  she  mounts  a  rostrum  and 
addresses  a  mixed  audience  of  all  classes  and  conditions 
of  men.  The  subject  is  praise  of  herself  as  the  goddess 
whom  all  men  follow.  To  prove  that  all  men  are  her  fol- 
lowers, she  calls  to  mind  the  follies  of  different  classes.  I 
can  only  refer  to  a  few  instances  cited  by  Folly  in  proof  of 
her  assertion.  First,  of  indulgences  and  pardons  for  sins— 
and  recollect  when  this  was  published  Luther  was  still  a 
devout  monk—  Folly  says : 

"But  what  shall  I  say  of  those  who  flatter  themselves  so  sweetly 
with  false  pardons  for  their  crimes,  who  have  measured  the  duration 
of  Purgatory  without  an  error,  as  if  by  a  water  clock  into  ages,  years, 
months  and  days.  Now  suppose  me  some  tradesman  or  soldier  or 
judge,  who  by  paying  out  a  penny  from  all  his  stealings  thinks  the 
whole  slough  of  his  life  is  cleaned  out  at  once—  all  his  perjuries,  lusts, 
drunkenness,  all  his  quarrels,  murders,  cheats,  treacheries,  false- 

*Since  this  was  in  type  I  have  seen  an        Luther  in  a  letter  spoke  of  "Our  Eras- 
article  in  the  English  Historical  Re-        mus." 
view  which  states  that  as  early  as  1517 

11 


Wt^iOtXiiXSt  hoods,  bought  off  by  a  bargain,  and  bought  off  in  such  a  way  that 
IT^rntfnt  tf  ^^  ™^^  '^^^  begin  over  again  with  a  new  circle  of  crimes.  And  is  it 
<ltTa0lttU0  not  much  the  same  thing  when  the  several  coimtries  claim  for  them- 
selves each  its  special  saint,  with  his  special  function  and  his  special 
forms  of  worship;  this  one  is  good  for  toothache,  that  one  helps 
women  in  travail,  another  restores  stolen  property;  this  one  shines 
upon  shipwreck  and  that  one  takes  care  of  the  flocks.  There  are  some 
that  are  good  for  more  things  than  one,  and  of  these  especially  the 
Virgin  Mother  of  God,  to  whom  the  mass  of  men  now  pay  more 
honor  than  to  the  Son.  The  apostles  prayed  to  God;  they  did  not 
know  that  to  pray  to  a  figiu-e  drawn  with  charcoal  on  a  wall  would  be 
equally  efficacious." 

Then  Folly  claims  that  all  these  things  that  men  get 
from  saints  are  appurtenances  of  folly.  She  says  the  world 
is  full  of  fools,  yet  the  priests  are  glad  to  get  them  all  for 
their  profit.  Then  she  continues: 

"But  if  some  hateful  wise  man  were  to  arise  and  say  what  is  true — 
to  live  well  is  the  way  to  die  well;  you  will  best  get  rid  of  your  sins  by 
hatred  of  vice,  tears,  vigils,  prayers  and  fasting  and  a  better  life,  the 
saint  will  help  you  if  you  imitate  his  life—  I  say  if  a  wise  man  were  to 
come  prating  such  stuff  as  this,  how  much  happiness  he  would  de- 
stroy and  what  trouble  he  would  bring  upon  mortals!" 

The  philosophers  and  theologians  of  his  time  came  in  for 
a  roasting  without  a  parallel  so  far  as  my  knowledge  of 
polemics  goes.  Then  he  takes  up  the  religious  orders  and 
leaves  little  to  be  said  in  the  way  of  accusation  and  de- 
nunciation. One  sentence  I  will  give: 

"But  Christ  will  interrupt  this  endless  bragging  and  will  demand: 
'Whence  this  new  kind  of  Judaism?  One  law  and  that  my  own  I 
recognize,  and  that  is  the  only  thing  I  hear  nothing  about.  In  that 
day,  using  no  twisted  parables,  I  promised  openly  the  inheritance  of 
my  Father,  not  to  cowls  and  prayers  and  fastings,  but  to  deeds  of 
love.' " 

I  will  close  this  account  of  Folly's  address  by  her  refer- 
ence to  the  popes.  Bear  in  mind  that  Alexander  VI  had 
died  shortly  before,  and  Julius  was  then  on  the  throne, 
and  observe  the  intimations  of  the  crimes  by  which  they 
attained  their  places.  Folly  says: 

"Those  supreme  pontiffs,  who  stand  in  the  place  of  Christ,  if  they 
should  try  to  imitate  his  life,  that  is,  his  poverty,  his  toil,  his  teach- 

12 


ing,  his  cross,  and  his  scorn  of  this  world,  or  if  they  should  think  of 
the  meaning  of  'pope,'  that  is,  'father'  or  even  of  'most  holy,'  what 
position  in  the  world  could  be  more  dreadful?  Who  would  buy  it  with 
all  his  resources,  or,  when  he  had  bought  it,  would  defend  it  by  sword 
and  poison  and  every  violence?  What  joys  they  would  lose  if  once 
wisdom  should  get  hold  of  them.  Wisdom  say  I,  nay,  even  a  grain  of 
the  salt  Christ  tells  us  of.  What  wealth,  what  honors,  riches,  con- 
quests, dispensations,  taxes,  indulgencies,  horses,  mules,  guards, 
pleasures,  they  would  lose,  and  in  their  place  vigils,  prayers,  fastings, 
tears,  sermons,  study  and  a  thousand  other  painful  toils  of  the  same 
sort." 

Observe  Folly's  reference  to  the  retainers  of  the  church 
and  then  to  the  bishops.  She  says: 

"That  this  whole  swarm  (that  is  to  say,  the  retainers)  which  now 
burdens— I  beg  your  pardon— honors  the  Roman  See,  would  be 
driven  to  starvation  but  for  me.  This  would  be  an  inhuman  and 
abominable  deed,  but  still  more  execrable  would  it  be  that  those 
chief  princes  of  the  church  and  true  lights  of  the  world  should  be 
reduced  to  scrip  and  staff.  As  it  is  now,  if  there  is  any  work  to  be 
done,  it  is  left  to  Peter  and  Paul,  who  have  plenty  of  leisure  for  it— 
but  if  there  is  anything  of  show  or  pleasure,  they  keep  that  for  them- 
selves. And  it  so  happens  that,  through  my  assistance,  there  is  scarce 
any  class  of  men  who  live  more  jovially  and  are  less  burdened  with 
care.  They  think  they  are  fulfilling  the  rule  of  Christ  if  they  play  the 
part  of  bishops  with  mystical  and  almost  theatrical  decorations,  cere- 
monies, titles  of  benediction,  of  reverence,  of  sanctity  with  blessings 
and  cursings." 

From  the  beginning  of  his  career  to  the  end  Erasmus  de- 
tested war.  In  his  opinion  it  was  the  greatest  of  human 
follies.  He  followed  Cicero,  in  declaring  that  a  bad  peace 
is  better  than  a  good  war.  Of  course  Folly,  in  praising  her- 
self, does  not  omit  the  benefactions  she  confers  on  man- 
kind by  war. 

Bear  in  mind  that  this  work  was  given  to  the  world  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  Julius  II,  the  warrior  pope.  I  quote  here 
fromEmerton: 

"An  opportimity  for  Erasmus  to  express  his  usual  detestation  of 
war  is  furnished  by  his  references  to  the  papal  warfare,  which  seems 
to  him  the  most  unjustifiable  of  all  forms  of  military  action.  Indeed 
one  may  fairly  say  that  in  this  year  1509  Erasmus  had  clearly  in 
mind  and  had  already  given  expression  to  the  views  which  were  to 

13 


2r>0SitDfttU0  form  the  ground  work  of  the  Reformation.  This  was  the  year  before 
(S^ndnrud  ^^^^^'s  journey  to  Rome,  and  Erasmus  himself  was  just  fresh  from 
Xl^lavUluv  the  impressions  of  an  Italian  residence.  The  worldly  lives  of  clergy- 
men, from  pope  to  friar,  the  burden  of  monastic  vows,  the  ignorance 
of  theologians  and  their  scholastic  backers,  the  follies  of  superstition, 
of  saint  worship,  the  wickedness  of  indulgences,  the  cruel  weight  of 
ceremonies  which  had  no  support  in  any  worthy  authority  -  all  these 
things  were  as  boldly  pointed  out  by  Erasmus  in  1509  as  they  were 
ever  to  be  shown  by  any  reformer  of  a  later  day.  The  Praise  of  Folly 
carried  his  proclamation  into  a  thousand  hands  that  would  never 
have  touched  the  sober,  but  not  more  serious,  criticism  of  less 
broadly  human  critics." 

As  a  literary  success,  the  Praise  of  Folly  was,  at  that 
time,  without  a  rival  in  literary  history.  No  less  than  forty- 
three  editions  were  published  in  the  author's  lifetime. 
Since  then  the  translations  and  publications  have  con- 
tinued down  to  our  own  time.  In  1511  Erasmus  published 
Copia  Verboruzn,  a  book  on  rhetoric  for  advanced  Latin 
students.  It  ran  through  more  than  fifty  editions  in  the 
author's  lifetime,  and  has  been  often  reprinted  since. 

Erasmus  remained  in  England  from  1509  to  1514,  living 
part  of  the  time  with  Sir  Thomas  More.  His  letters  de- 
scribing the  More  household  and  ways  of  life  are  most 
interesting.  For  a  time  he  was  at  Cambridge  giving  lec- 
tures. In  1511  he  writes  Colet,  "I  have  finished  the  colla- 
tion of  the  New  Testament."  It  is  probable  that  most  of 
the  work  on  the  New  Testament  was  done  in  England. 

The  warrior  pope,  Julius  II,  died  in  1513.  Shortly  there- 
after a  play  was  put  upon  the  stage  in  Paris,  entitled 
Julius  Exclusus.  Its  performance  was  suppressed  by  the 
authorities.  This  did  not,  however,  prevent  its  being 
printed  and  widely  read.  It  was  anonymous,  but  its  sar- 
casm was  so  scorching,  its  style  so  good,  and  its  Latin  so 
superior  that  all  the  literary  world  immediately  ascribed 
it  to  Erasmus.  It  was  agreed  that  there  was  no  other  man 
in  Europe  who  could  have  written  it.  People  said  its  au- 
thor was  either  the  devil  or  Erasmus.  Erasmus'  denial  of 
authorship  is  not  very  positive.  He  merely  said  that  he 
never  published  anything  except  over  his  own  name.  Sir 

14 


Thomas  More  in  an  elaborate  defense  of  his  friend,  writ-  WtHit^ttiUfi 

ten  to  a  cleric  who  accused  Erasmus  of  heresy,  seems  to  (I^i:a0UlU0 

admit  that  Erasmus  was  probably  the  author  of  Julius. 

Late  researches  seem  to  leave  no  doubt  that  Erasmus  was 

the  author.  Of  all  the  bitter  lampoons  upon  a  dead  pope 

or  king,  Julius  Exclusus  is  entitled  to  first  place.  The 

spirit  of  Julius  appears  at  the  gate  of  heaven,  followed  by 

the  spirits  of  his  warriors,  and  commands  it  to  be  opened. 

Peter  appears  and  wants  to  know  who  it  is  and  what  he 

wants,  to  which  Julius  commands: 

"Open  the  gate.  Don't  you  see  this  key  and  the  triple  a:own  and 
the  pallium?" 

Peter  replies: 

"I  see  a  key,  but  not  the  key  which  Christ  gave  to  me  a  long  time 
since.  The  crown?  I  don't  recognize  the  crown.  No  heathen  king  ever 
wore  such  a  thing,  certainly  none  who  expected  to  be  let  in  here. 
The  pallium  is  strange,  too.  Let  me  look  at  you  a  little  closer.  Hum  I 
Signs  of  impiety  in  plenty,  and  none  of  the  other  things.  Who  are 
these  fellows  behind  you?  Faugh!  They  smell  of  stews,  drink  shops 
and  gimpowder.  Have  you  brought  goblins  out  of  Tartarus  to  make 
war  with  heaven?  Yourself,  too,  are  not  precisely  like  an  apostle. 
Priest's  cassock  and  bloody  armor  below  it,  eyes  savage,  mouth  inso- 
lent, forehead  brazen,  body  scarred  with  sins  all  over,  breath  loaded 
with  wine,  health  broken  with  debauchery." 

Peter  then,  by  questions,  makes  Julius  tell  the  crimes  of 
his  life,  how  he  attained  the  papacy,  the  cruel  and  unjust 
wars  he  had  waged,  all  interspersed  by  sarcastic  com- 
ments by  Peter. 

It  is  said  this  dialogue  between  Peter  and  Julius  attained 
as  extensive  circulation  as  the  Praise  of  Folly y  which 
means  that  it  was  read  by  all  the  reading  part  of  Europe. 

Erasmus  left  England  in  1514,  and  never  again  crossed 
the  channel,  though  he  kept  up  correspondence  with  his 
friends  there,  and  especially  with  Sir  Thomas  More,  his 
most  intimate  friend.  Always  in  after  life  he  retained  and 
expressed  the  strongest  admiration  for  England  and  his 
English  friends.  From  them  a  large  part  of  his  income  was 
derived.  From  England  he  went  to  Basel  with  the  manu- 

15 


SE>e0tDmu0  script  of  his  New  Testament,  and  there  it  was  printed 
d^ta^ttlUSi  ^y  Froben.  Froben,  one  of  the  worid's  most  celebrated 
printers,  and  Erasmus  became  close  friends.  On  Froben's 
death  his  son  took  his  place  as  friend  and  publisher.  This 
edition  of  the  New  Testament  contained  the  Greek  text 
and  in  a  parallel  column  the  translation  into  Latin,  supple- 
mented with  numerous  notes.  The  new  Pope  Leo  X  ap- 
proved the  work  and  accepted  the  dedication  of  it  to 
himself.  Froude,  in  his  usual  picturesque  manner,  says 
the  effect  of  this  publication  was  a  spiritual  earthquake, 
that  the  notes  made  the  hair  of  the  orthodox  stand  on  end. 
I  will  give  you  one  or  two  notes  that  justify  Froude's 
statement  of  its  effect.  After  the  text  of  Matthew  xxiii, 
verse  27,  where  Christ  accuses  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  of 
being  whited  sepulchres,  the  note  says: 

"What  would  Jerome  say  could  he  see  the  Virgin's  milk  exhibited 
for  money  with  as  much  honor  paid  to  it  as  to  the  consecrated  body 
of  Christ;  the  miraculous  oil;  the  portions  of  the  true  cross,  enough 
to  freight  a  large  ship?  Here  we  have  the  blood  of  St.  Francis,  there 
Oxir  Lady's  petticoat  or  St.  Anne's  comb,  or  St.  Thomas  of  Canter- 
bury's shoes;  not  presented  as  innocent  aids  to  religion,  but  as  the 
substance  of  religion  itself— and  all  through  the  avarice  of  priests 
and  the  hypocrisy  of  monks  playing  on  the  credulity  of  the  people. 
Even  bishops  play  their  parts  in  these  fantastic  shows,  and  approve 
and  dwell  on  them  in  their  rescripts." 

Matthew  xxiv:23,  on  "Lo,  here  is  Christ,"  Erasmus  says: 

"I  saw  with  my  own  eyes  Pope  Julius  II  at  Bologna  and  afterwards 
at  Rome  marching  at  the  head  of  a  triumphal  procession  as  if  he  were 
Caesar  or  Pompey.  St.  Peter  subdued  the  world  with  faith,  not  with 
arms  or  soldiers  or  military  engines.  St.  Peter's  successors  would  win 
as  many  victories  as  St.  Peter  won  if  they  had  St.  Peter's  spirit." 

This  New  Testament  went  over  Europe  like  wild  fire. 
One  hundred  thousand  copies  were  sold  in  France  alone. 
That  would  be  equivalent  in  these  days  to  millions  of 
copies  being  sold  in  one  country.  Edition  after  edition 
were  called  for  as  fast  as  printers  could  turn  them  out, 
Erasmus  to  the  end  of  his  life  adding  constantly  notes 
and  corrections.  The  first  publication  was  in  1514.  In  No- 

16 


vember,  1517,  something  over  three  years  later,  Luther  Wt&it)ttiu^ 
began  his  crusade  by  posting  his  theses  at  Wittenberg.*      d^ta^UtUd 

Strange  to  say,  Emerton  only  makes  a  brief  one-page 
reference  to  this  world-moving  book,  while  to  the  Copia 
Verboruzn,  a  school  book,  he  gives  six  pages.  But  as  he 
too  often  does  he  gets  in  a  dig  by  saying  that 

"recent  scholarship  has  shown  that  he  not  only  used  very  defective 
manuscripts  of  no  great  antiquity,  but  he  failed  to  make  adequate 
use  of  the  best  one  at  his  disposal." 

If  Erasmus  only  had  defective  manuscripts  he  made 
most  effective  use  of  them,  for  he  anticipated  modem 
biblical  scholars  in  important  particulars:  for  example, 
he  was  the  first  to  reject  as  an  interpolation  the  three 
witnesses'  verse  in  John's  Epistle,  viz.:  "For  there  are 
three  that  bear  record  in  heaven,  the  Father,  the  Word 
and  the  Holy  Ghost;  and  these  three  are  one."** 

In  order  to  help  the  common  people  to  understand  the 
Scriptures,  he  prepared  a  paraphrase  of  the  New  Testa- 
znent,  which  was  translated  into  all  the  European  lan- 
guages. The  English  translation  was  ordered  to  be  read 
in  all  the  churches. 

In  1516  Erasmus  took  up  his  residence  at  Louvain  and 
remained  there  for  a  few  years,  at  first  enjoying  the  fel- 
lowship of  the  professors  at  the  University,  but  later 
made  uncomfortable  by  the  hostility  of  some  of  them 
because  of  his  heretical  tendencies.  While  in  Louvain, 
Charles  V  appointed  him  a  Councillor  of  State.  He  there- 
upon produced  as  remarkable,  novel  and  heretical  a  docu- 
ment on  government  as  then  understood  and  practised  as 

•It  is  a  fact  which  Protestants  have  did  to  bring  on  revolution  instead  of 

lost  sight  of  that  the  popularity  reform  will  be  briefly  noted  further  on. 
throughout  all  Europe    of   Erasmus'  •*Mark  Pattison  in  his  Cyclopedia 

writings,  before  Luther  was  heard  of,  Britannica  article  says  of  the  Greek 

is  proof  that  Christendom  was  perme-  Testament,    that   its   influence    upon 

ated  with  religious  xmrest.  Germany  opinion    was    profoimd    and  durable; 

and  France  were  specially  affected  and  it  contributed  more  to  the  liberation  of 

when  Luther  came  to  the  front  he  only  the  human  mind  from  the  thralldom 

voiced  the  feeling  of  a  large  part  and  of  the  clergy  than  all  the  uproar  and 

the  best  part  of  the  people.  What  his  rage  of  Luther's  many  pamphlets, 
violence  and  his  theological  dogmas 

17 


2E>00iD0tiu0  he  had  produced  on  the  church.  As  councillor  he  drew  up 
(I];ra0ntU0  ^^^  presented  to  the  young  monarch  an  address  giving 
advice  as  to  the  proper  duties  of  a  king.  Shortly  after  its 
delivery  it  was  printed  and,  like  everything  else  of  his, 
widely  circulated.  Never  was  sounder  advice  given  to 
king  or  Parliament  or  Congress.  As  usual  he  was  hun- 
dreds of  years  in  advance  of  his  time. 

It  was  a  novel  doctrine  in  that  age  that  the  king  was 
the  servant  of  the  people,  and  occupied  his  place  for  their 
good  and  not  for  his  own  glory.  Erasmus  asserted  that  the 
highest  success  came  from  the  observance  of  moral  laws, 
that  no  taxes  should  be  levied  that  were  not  absolutely 
necessary  for  the  good  of  the  commonwealth,  and  when 
taxes  were  levied  they  should  not,  as  was  the  custom,  be 
levied  on  the  necessities  of  life,  but  so  far  as  possible  on 
luxuries.  Taxes  should  be  imposed  on  those  best  able  to 
bear  them,  viz.:  the  rich;  the  poor  should  not  be  made 
more  miserable  by  the  king's  taxes.  He  said : 

"It  may  be  a  good  thing  to  summon  the  rich  to  frugality,  but  to 
compel  the  poor  to  hunger  and  the  gallows  is  not  merely  inhuman, 
but  dangerous  as  well." 

The  concluding  chapter  is  devoted  to  the  folly  and 
wickedness  of  war.  Finally  he  asserts  that  where  disputes 
arise  between  princes,  that  instead  of  plunging  their  peo- 
ples into  the  horrors  of  war,  they  should  resort  to  arbi- 
tration. On  this  feature  of  the  address  Emerton  says : 

"Here  is  international  arbitration,  pure  and  simple,  and  so  far  as  I 
know  not  to  be  found  in  any  modern  writer  before  Erasmus;  a  dream 
as  yet  in  his  time  and  long  to  remain  so,  but,  in  the  vast  ebb  and 
flow  of  human  affairs,  coming  ever  nearer  to  some  definite  realiza- 
tion." 

The  world  was  not  ready  for  Erasmus'  theory  that  gov- 
ernment was  for  the  good  of  the  people  and  that  arbitra- 
tion between  nations  should  be  resorted  to  instead  of  war. 

In  1521  Erasmus  left  Louvain  and  took  up  his  residence 
in  Basel.  He  probably  left  Louvain  because  he  feared 
Charles  V  would  require  him  to  write  against  Luther. 

18 


In  1523  he  published  his  first  edition  of  the  Colloquies.  2DesfiDeritt2f 
It  was  intended  for  the  use  of  students  of  Latin,  but  so  (I];ta0mu0 
enriched  by  his  notes  that  it  became  immensely  popular. 
One  bookseller  sold  an  edition  of  24,000  in  one  year. 
Another  printer  in  Paris,  having  heard,  or  perhaps  only 
pretending  that  he  had  heard,  that  the  Sorbonne  was 
about  to  prohibit  the  sale  of  the  Colloquies,  got  out  an 
edition  of  24,000  copies.  Observe  that  Luther  began  his 
career  in  1517,  that  the  Diet  of  Worms  was  in  1521,  and 
that  Erasmus,  though  much  abused  by  the  followers  of 
Luther,  yet  gave  out  this  work  in  1523  and  1524.  It 
literally  made  Rome  howl.  The  rage  was  not  of  the  wise 
and  good  men  of  the  church,  but  of  the  great  mass  of  the 
priests  and  monks. 

Erasmus  had  the  protection  of  the  pope  and  also  of  his 
monarch,  Charles  V,  and  of  Francis  I  of  France,  and  the 
support  of  the  intelligent  portion  of  Europe,  and  was  able 
to  bid  defiance  to  his  enemies.  If  he  had  lived  thirty  years 
more,  he  would  undoubtedly  have  been  burned  for  his 
opinions. 

The  Colloquies  was  the  last  of  the  Erasmus  great 
books,  though  he  continued  to  write,  to  edit,  to  publish 
with  ceaseless  industry  till  his  death  in  1536.  He  con- 
tinually put  out  new  editions  of  his  works,  with  added 
notes,  but  without  retracting  any  of  his  criticisms  of  the 
clergy  or  the  superstitions  of  the  church. 

We  must  now,  and  as  briefly  as  possible,  consider  Eras- 
mus* relations  to  the  Reformation  as  it  is  called.  I  think 
that  Protestant  students  of  history  are  coming  to  an 
agreement  that  it  was  not  really  a  reformation,  but  a 
revolution.  It  was  a  root  and  branch  rebellion  against 
the  church  of  Rome,  carried  to  a  successful  issue  in  Nor- 
thern Europe  and  England.  Erasmus,  in  1521,  when 
Luther  appeared  before  the  Diet  of  Worms,  was  fifty-five 
years  of  age,  but  in  fact  much  older  than  his  years  indi- 
cated, weak  in  body  and  in  the  grasp  of  a  painful  disease 
which  in  that  age  was  incurable.  His  life  had  been  de- 

19 


Wt&i^tXiUii  voted  to  two  objects;  first,  to  advance  learning.  He  main- 
CBta0tnU0  tained  that  human  progress  must  come  and  could  only- 
come  from  knowledge.  Second,  the  reformation  of  the 
religion  of  his  day.  He  would  apply  reason,  sound  learn- 
ing and  common  sense  to  theological  discussion.  He  had 
made  bitter  war  on  the  priests  and  monks  for  their  im- 
morality, and  their  encouragement  of  superstition.  He 
had  made  war  on  the  theologians  and  philosophers  of  his 
time  for  their  unnecessary  and  unreasonable  dogmas  and 
hair-splitting  theories.  Many  will  no  doubt  think  that 
still  greater  value  should  be  given  to  his  bringing  home 
so  clearly  to  men's  minds  that  a  church  intermediary  be- 
tween man  and  his  Maker  is  not  necessary  to  his  salva- 
tion. It  was  the  advocacy  of  this  principle  that  in  part 
gave  Luther  his  hold  upon  mankind.  This  constitutes,  in 
my  opinion,  Luther's  only  contribution  to  human  prog- 
ress. But  Luther  first,  and  then  Calvin,  made  the  dogmas 
of  foreordination,  predestination  and  election  basic  stones 
of  their  theological  systems.  Erasmus  contended  that 
Christ  meant  what  he  said  when  he  declared  that  man's 
service  to  his  fellowmen  was  the  test  of  his  right  to  enter 
the  kingdom,  and  that  his  theological  beliefs  cut  no 
figure. 

The  eagerness  with  which  all  that  Erasmus  published 
was  read  shows  that  he  was  talking  to  a  sympathetic 
audience.  The  better  class  of  the  clergy  were  his  friends, 
likewise  Popes  Leo,  Adrian,  Clement  and  Paul.  His  young 
King  Charles  V  was  friendly  to  him  and  protected  him 
when  his  clerical  enemies  sought  to  deliver  him  to  the 
inquisition.  Francis  I  wrote  to  him  with  his  own  hand  a 
letter,  asking  him  to  come  to  Paris.  Likewise,  Henry 
VIII  begged  him  to  come  to  England.  These  three  yoimg 
kings  were  in  sympathy  with  his  desire  to  reform  the 
church,  and  after  Julius  the  successive  popes  of  his  life- 
time were  not  hostile,  but  all  four  believed  that  there 
should  be  reforms.  The  time  was  ripe  for  reform,  but 
not  for  overturning  the  church. 

20 


When  Luther,  and  after  him  Calvin,  not  only  attacked  H>0S^it)ettttS> 
the  church  as  the  whore  of  Babylon,  but  promulgated  pre-  (^x^HmUS 
destination  and  election  as  the  basic  principles  of  their 
theology,  the  moderate  reformers  were  aghast  and  re- 
fused their  support.  A  great  Catholic  reaction  set  in. 
Within  the  church  itself  there  was  a  very  considerable 
reformation.  Erasmus  at  first  sympathized  with  Luther. 
Naturally  he  would,  for  he  himself  for  many  years  had 
been  making  war  on  indulgences,  saint  worship  and  other 
superstitions  of  the  church,  the  immorality  of  the  clergy, 
and  preaching  the  necessity  of  a  pure  life  to  reach  Heaven. 
They  had  some  friendly  correspondence,  Luther  begging 
Erasmus  to  come  out  on  his  side,  and  if  he  could  not  do 
that,  not  to  attack  him;  Erasmus  urging  Luther  to  be 
more  moderate,  to  refrain  from  violence.  Erasmus  wrote 
to  Luther: 

"Generally  I  think  courtesy  to  opponents  is  more  effective  than 
violence.  *  *  *  Old  institutions  cannot  be  rooted  up  in  an  in- 
stant. Quick  argument  may  do  more  than  wholesale  condemnation. 
Avoid  all  appearance  of  sedition.  Keep  cool.  Do  not  get  angry.  Do  not 
hate  anybody.  Do  not  be  excited  over  the  noise  you  have  made." 

Meanwhile  the  adherents  of  the  church  were  clamoring 
for  Erasmus  to  come  out  and  demolish  Luther.  Both  sides 
thought  and  said  that  Erasmus  laid  the  egg  that  Luther 
hatched.  Erasmus  replied:  "Yes,  I  laid  an  hen's  egg,  but 
Luther  hatched  a  crow's,"  and  he  refused  to  come  out  for 
Luther.  Luther's  doctrine  of  predestination  was  so  hate- 
ful to  him  that  he  yielded  to  his  church  friends  to  the 
extent  of  publishing  a  little  treatise  combatting  the  doc- 
trine, but  further  he  would  not  go.  The  gist  of  Erasmus' 
argviment  against  Luther's  doctrine  of  election  seems  to 
be  that  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  God  could  deliber- 
ately or  at  all  create  human  beings  and  destine  them  to 
eternal  torments  without  fault  of  their  own. 

This  untheological  but  common-sense  view  of  the  mat- 
ter excited  the  ire  of  Luther  to  an  extraordinary  degree. 
Luther  admitted  that  here  was  the  root  of  the  discussion 

21 


SDesiDrrius?  but  denounced  Erasmus  for  questioning  the  decrees  of 

d^gtnuflf  God.  "See  him,"  he  said,  "crawling  like  a  viper  to  ensnare 

simple  souls,   after  the  manner  of  the  serpent  of  old, 

which  whispered  in  the  ear  of  Mother  Eve,  and  made  her 

doubt  the  precepts  of  God." 

During  an  illness,  in  writing  to  his  son  John  he  said, 
"If  ever  I  get  well  and  strong  again  I  will  fully  and  pub- 
licly assert  my  God  against  Erasmus.  I  will  not  sell  my 
dear  Jesus.  I  am  daily  approaching  the  grave  —nearer  and 
nearer  — and  I  am  anxious,  therefore,  to  lose  no  time  in 
once  more  and  emphatically  asserting  my  God  in  the 
face  of  all  against  this  bad  man.  Hitherto  I  have  hesi- 
tated. I  said  to  myself  *if  you  kill  him,  what  will  happen?' 
I  killed  Munzer  and  his  death  at  times  weighs  upon  me, 
but  I  killed  him  because  he  sought  to  kill  my  Christ." 
Afterwards  he  said  in  a  sermon,  "I  pray  you  all  to 
vow  enmity  to  Erasmus."  Again  to  two  friends  he  said, 
"I  recommend  it  to  you  as  my  last  will  to  be  terrible  and 
unflinching  to  that  serpent."  In  a  letter  to  a  friend  he 
said,  "Christ  will  judge  this  atheist,  this  Lucian,  this 
Epicurus." 

Luther  retained  this  animosity  to  the  end  of  his  life. 

The  larger,  more  humane  and  modem  view  that  Eras- 
mus entertained  towards  Lutherans  is  seen  in  his  earnest 
endeavor  to  prevent  their  persecution. 

The  Pope  Adrian  wrote  to  him  for  advice  regarding 
Luther.  In  reply  Erasmus  most  strongly  urged  toleration; 
on  no  account  to  persecute  Luther  or  his  followers. 

So  far  as  my  reading  goes,  he  was  not  only  the  first  to 
suggest  arbitration  for  the  settlement  of  international 
disputes,  the  first  to  propound  the  correct  system  of  taxa- 
tion, the  first  to  proclaim  the  follies  and  wickedness  of  the 
generality  of  kings,  the  first  to  question  belief  in  dogma 
as  necessary  to  salvation,  the  first  to  insist  that  we  should 
apply  reason  and  common  sense  to  religion,  but  the  first 
to  maintain  there  should  be  no  persecution  for  heresy. 

Sir  Thomas  More  in  his  Utopia  had  described  a  toler- 

22 


ant  state  church,  and  no  doubt  the  two  friends  had  agreed  SDefi(iDn:iU2> 
on  the  subject  of  religious  toleration,  but  More  became  (^t^^xttXlSi 
intolerant,  while  Erasmus  steadily  maintained  his  opin- 
ion. He  even  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  Arius  must  have 
been  a  good  and  wise  man  and  should  not  have  been  de- 
clared a  heretic.  Contrast  this  spirit  of  Erasmus  with  that 
of  Calvin,  and  especially  of  the  latter's  treatment  of 
Servetus. 

The  great  artist  Durer  became  a  warm  personal  friend 
of  Erasmus,  and  left  to  posterity  a  portrait  of  him.  Com- 
menting on  his  personal' appearance,  he  said:  "With  that 
sharp  nose  he  himted  down  everything  but  heresy." 

His  plea  for  the  Bohemian  Brethren  is  a  striking  instance 
of  his  tolerant  spirit. 

Most  of  the  remaining  years  of  his  life  were  spent  in  the 
Protestant  city  of  Basel.  The  pope  tried  to  get  him  to 
come  to  Rome,  holding  out  the  temptation  of  a  cardinal's 
hat.  In  1535,  the  year  before  his  death,  he  wrote  the  pope 
a  polite  acknowledgment,  but  said:  "I  desire  only  to  go 
home  and  find  favor  with  Christ." 

While  at  Basel  he  was  so  disgusted  with  outrages  perpe- 
trated on  the  Catholic  churches  by  Protestants  that  he 
left  the  city  for  a  time  and  took  up  his  residence  in  Frei- 
burg, a  Catholic  city,  free  at  the  time  from  the  religious 
dissensions  so  distasteful  to  him,  but  after  a  time  re- 
turned to  Basel,  where  he  was  esteemed  by  the  people 
of  both  parties,  though  he  would  not  join  either,  as  their 
most  distinguished  citizen. 

Both  Catholics  and  Protestants  have  assailed  his  mem- 
ory because  he  would  not  come  out  and  help  in  their  bitter 
contest.  Even  his  last  biographer  Emerton,  of  Harvard, 
maintains  that  he  should  have  stood  up  and  been  counted 
on  one  side  or  the  other.  To  me  this  is  most  unreasonable. 
Consider  his  age,  his  infirmities,  the  settled  beliefs  to  which 
he  had  devoted  his  life,  the  violence  of  the  contending 
forces  and  his  utter  disbelief  in  the  contentions  of  both 
sides,  his  assured  belief,  often  expressed,  that  learning  and 

23 


WtiiHttixlS  true  religion  would  be  crushed  in  the  conflict.  As  an  hon- 
(BtUSittXUfS  ^^  man,  he  could  not  take  sides.  As  an  infirm  old  man, 
it  was  quiet  he  wanted,  not  war  and  bloodshed.  With  the 
keenness  of  perception  with  which  he  was  endowed,  he 
knew  that  church  reform  could  only  come  by  evolution, 
that  rebellion  would  bring  on  a  conflict  in  which  the  mass 
of  the  people  would  resent  attacks  on  their  religion.  He 
saw  clearly  the  religious  wars  that  were  bound  to  come. 
They  did  come  and  for  two  hundred  years  large  parts  of 
Europe  were  devastated  by  cruel  and  relentless  war,  and 
the  learning  which  Erasmus  was  so  eager  to  acquire  and 
to  bestow  was  nearly  drowned  in  blood. 

In  1536,  his  seventieth  year,  completely  worn  out  by 
long  illness  and  unceasing  labor,  he  died.  There  is  no 
record  of  a  priest  or  of  a  minister  being  called  to  visit 
him  in  his  illness  or  to  administer  the  last  rites  of  the 
church.  If  there  had  been  such  a  visit,  it  would  certainly 
have  been  noted  by  friends  who  wrote  of  his  death.  He 
died  as  he  had  lived,  believing  that  the  gates  of  Paradise 
are  open  to  him  who  has  served  his  fellowman. 


24 


